Before we left for Omaha, I mailed this blanket off to Samantha in Texas. I hope and pray she gets the chance to use it for years to come.

Sammy is still in need of prayers, and so are her parents Stephanie and Travis. In the week since they figured out she has bacterial meningitis, she’s made some good progress but also had a few sobering setbacks. The strain of bacteria causing the disease was not the kind that is resistant to antibiotics, so that was great news. She was having seizures (not uncommon for infants with meningitis, I gather) so underwent an MRI, which showed extensive brain damage. She developed encephalitis. Then a lumbar puncture showed the white cell count was down, meaning the infection was under control, and they began to wean Sammy from the vent. A second MRI revealed the disease had progressed to ventriculitis, many infarctions, and that the brain damage seems to have grown more extensive.

Even though Stephanie and Travis (who is a Lutheran pastor) have great faith and are being supported by their friends and family and uplifted by the knowledge that people all over the world are thinking of them and praying for their little girl, this has to feel like a nightmare. They can’t protect their baby girl. They can only trust God and the doctors and hope for the best.

Thank you for your prayers so far. If you have a moment, please say a prayer, make a wish, light a candle, or WHATEVER for Samantha and her family. From the bottom of my heart, thank you. I know Stephanie and Travis would thank you too.

UPDATE 5/1/2011: GOOD NEWS! Sammy was weaned off the respirator and oxygen and is breathing on her own. And, she was moved from the ICU to an intermediary room where her parents can stay in the room with her. They still have a long road ahead of them but things are looking up. Woohoo! Thank you for all your thoughts and prayers for them!

I crocheted this log cabin baby blanket for my friend Stephanie’s baby girl, Samantha. It’s sitting on my bookcase, freshly laundered and neatly folded, waiting for me to remember to mail it off to Texas.

Today I’m glad for my forgetfulness, because it’s serving as a reminder to pray every time I glance at it.

Six-week-old Samantha (she was born the day before my birthday) is in the hospital with an unknown illness. It’s pretty serious, and they’re still trying to figure out exactly what’s going on. My heart is aching for Stephanie and her husband Travis. I remember how scary it was to be in the ER with Elliora after Christmas before we knew what was going on. And even though I’m trying not to, I can’t help but think of Easter two years ago, when two bloggers tragically lost their babies within a week of each other.

This little girl was very much wished for and waited on and is loved so very much. I’m scared for Stephanie and Travis, and praying hard for them and Samantha. Could you please say a prayer – make a wish – send healing thoughts their way too? Thank you.

UPDATE: Samantha has bacterial meningitis. It’s scary but she’s stable and they are giving her antibiotics. The next 48 hours are critical so please keep her in your thoughts and prayers. Thank you!

Every one of your caption ideas was fantastic. I really wanted to pick a winner outright but I couldn’t do it! There were too many good ones. So just for kicks, I picked the four captions that made me laugh out loud and created a poll. Help me pick a winner!